-Complete Version of “The Jefferson Bible” Available for the First Time Online With His Deletions-

New York, NY– March 11, 2008 – Beliefnet, the leading online community for faith and spirituality, unveiled today its Founding Faith Archives, an online repository which brings together for the first time in one location, hundreds of historical documents and seminal writings by and on the Founding Fathers, separation of church and state, and the birth of religious freedom in the United States. Featured in the archive is the first complete online version of “The Jefferson Bible” in which people can see Jefferson’s edits as well as his key deletions. The indexed and searchable archive is available at http://www.beliefnet.com/foundingfaith/.

The Founding Faith Archive grew out of Beliefnet Editor-in-Chief, Steven Waldman’s research for his new book, FOUNDING FAITH: Providence, Politics, and the Birth of Religious Freedom in America, published and released today by Random House. The archive reflects the emphasis of Waldman’s book, which explores the religious beliefs of America’s Founding Fathers: George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson and James Madison, and vividly describes how America came to worship freely. Read more about the book here.

“Religious freedom is one of America’s greatest achievements,” said Waldman, Editor-in-Chief of Beliefnet. “Activists routinely misquote the Founding Fathers and distort their true views on this profoundly important topic. Now you can read the documents yourself and see how Jefferson, Adams, Madison, Washington and the other Founders wrestled with these difficult topics.”